Early conversation key to preserving former religious properties

Christine Bulmer, Eileen Anderson and Marion Fotache, representatives from the Citizens for St. Patrick's, sit in front of developer John Nigro, president of the Nigro Companies, during the New York Landmarks Conservancy convention regarding the adaptive reuse of religious properties held at the Carey Center in Rensselaerville Thursday. (Mike McMahon / The Record)

Noah Levine of the Jewish Community Legacy Project, left, and Rev. Cass L. Shaw, general presbyter for the Albany Presbytery, were among the featured speakers at the New York Landmarks Conservancy conference regarding the adaptive reuse of religious properties held at the Carey Center in Rensselaerville Thursday. (Mike McMahon / The Record)

RENSSELAERVILLE -- The fate of churches, convents, and schools that were once the center of communities' religious lives, but have been shuttered over the years, was the focus of a conference at the Carey Center for Global Good Thursday.

The question concerning the conference was -- how does a community keep churches open, or, if closed, what does the community do with these buildings, which no longer serve the purpose for which they were intended?

For churches that still have congregations the key to continuation is early action. "Any way we can participate in conversations much earlier -- rather than waiting until a building is in shambles and there are eight people left -- if we can participate in these conversations ten years earlier, than we've got a shot," said Rev. Cass L. Shaw, the general presbyter for the Albany Presbytery.

Only when a congregation acts years before a church is in its last days, and still has the financial and human resources to create revenue, is there a strong chance that it might be kept afloat. And, if the church body cannot be sustained, then at least a use for the church building be found.

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The Presbytery, which covers 11 counties, has seen several of its churches in the region close in recent years. The historic Woodside Memorial Presbyterian Church in South Troy, which closed in 2003, was sold to the heirs of the wealthy businessman who built it, and later sold to a group that converted it into the Contemporary Artists Center.

For the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany, early actions have saved many churches from likely demolition. In the 14 counties of the organization, the decades-long trend of declining congregations most recently came to a head when the diocese instituted its Called to BE Church initiative, closing 33 churches as it merged and consolidated once-robust parishes, primarily in the urban cores.

"Our buildings are very difficult to market and very difficult to sell," said Noel Olsen, director of the diocese's Office of Real Property. When selling, the diocese first approaches other religious groups to see if they would be interested in the properties, then it approachs nonprofits, and finally secular and commercial interests.

Since 2002, before the initiative, the diocese has sold 49 churches, said Olsen. Of those, 17 went to other denominations, and and six were bought by not-for-profit organizations. Primarily in the rural areas, 15 churches were transformed into artist or music studios. Of the rest, one went to a municipality -- it was bought by the town of Berne, in Albany County -- and 10 went to for-profit entities, one of which is the former St. Brigid's in Watervliet, which now houses Wicked Smart Apparel, a screen printing company. Within the diocese, revenues from the sale of religious properties stay within the communities, going to the successor parish or parishes.

"We've been fairly fortunate to be able to reuse many of our churches," Olsen said.

"The local municipality is key," he continued. "You need to have some sort a partnership so that you're working together to solve the problems. If you don't do that -- it's not going to happen."

Regardless of whether a church still has a congregation or whether it has been acquired by another entity, an emphasis was placed on being listed on the National Register of Historic Landmarks, which can aid with the acquisition of grant funding for renovation and restoration projects.

Some churches, however, could not be saved--whether through neglect or some other cause. The fate of such structures galvanized the conference.

The Silliman Memorial Presbyterian Chapel, an expansive Romanesque Revival church, was once located across from Cohoes City Hall at the intersection of Mohawk and Seneca streets. The church complex was demolished in 1998 following years of neglect. Another church may soon face a similar fate. Barring successful litigation, St. Patrick's in Watervliet is slated for demolition to make way for a Price Chopper supermarket.